Power line operators assume that the ampacity of a power line is a constant value. When calculating power line ampacity, conservative assumptions about weather in the power line's environment are used. In some environmental situations, these conservative assumptions about the weather may result in not using the power line to its fullest safe capacity. For example, the power line's real-time environment may be cloudy and cool, however, conservative assumptions when initially rating the power line may have been for direct sunlight and high temperatures. Thus, the conventional strategy is to make conservative assumptions about weather in the power line's environment and not consider real-time environmental conditions. This often causes problems because the conventional strategy results in underutilizing a power line's capacity in some situations.